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Pdf | 2.29 Mb | Executive Summary EXECUTIVE SUMMARY EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 1Conclusions and policy implications 1Conclusions and policy implications 2019 2019 © United Nations, June 2019. All rights reserved worldwide. ISBN: 978-92-1-148314-7 eISBN: 978-92-1-004174-4 United Nations publication, Sales No. E.19.XI.9 This publication may be reproduced in whole or in part and in any form for educational or non-profit purposes without special permission from the copyright holder, provided acknowledgement of the source is made. The United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) would appreciate receiving a copy of any publication that uses this publication as a source. Suggested citation:, World Drug Report 2019 (United Nations publication, Sales No. E.19.XI.8). No use of this publication may be made for resale or any other commercial purpose whatsoever without prior permission in writing from UNODC. Applications for such permission, with a statement of purpose and intent of the reproduction, should be addressed to the Research and Trend Analysis Branch of UNODC. DISCLAIMER The content of this publication does not necessarily reflect the views or policies of UNODC or contributory organizations, nor does it imply any endorsement. Comments on the report are welcome and can be sent to: Division for Policy Analysis and Public Affairs United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime PO Box 500 1400 Vienna Austria Tel: (+43) 1 26060 0 Fax: (+43) 1 26060 5827 E-mail: [email protected] Website: www.unodc.org/wdr2019 PREFACE The findings of this year’s World Drug Report fill in same time clamping down on organized crime and and further complicate the global picture of drug trafficking. challenges, underscoring the need for broader inter- Opium production and cocaine manufacture remain national cooperation to advance balanced and at record levels. The amounts intercepted are also integrated health and criminal justice responses to higher than ever, with the amount of cocaine seized drug supply and demand. up 74 per cent over the past decade, compared with With improved research and more precise data from a 50 per cent rise in manufacture during the same India and Nigeria – both among the 10 most-pop- period. This suggests that law enforcement efforts ulous countries in the world – we see that there are have become more effective and that strengthened many more opioid users and people with drug use international cooperation may be helping to increase disorders than previously estimated. Globally, some interception rates. 35 million people, up from an earlier estimate of The World Drug Report 2019 also registers a decline 30.5 million, suffer from drug use disorders and in opiate trafficking from Afghanistan along the require treatment services. The death toll is also “northern” route through Central Asia to the Rus- higher: 585,000 people died as a result of drug use sian Federation. In 2008, some 10 per cent of the in 2017. morphine and heroin intercepted globally was seized Prevention and treatment continue to fall far short in countries along the northern route; by 2017 it of needs in many parts of the world. This is particu- had fallen to 1 per cent. This may be due in part to larly true in prisons, where those incarcerated are a shift in demand to synthetics in destination mar- especially vulnerable to drug use and face higher kets. The increased effectiveness of regional responses risks of HIV and hepatitis C transmission. This gap may also play a role. represents a major impediment to achieving the Sus- Countries in central Asia, with the support of the tainable Development Goals and fulfilling the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime international community’s pledge to leave no one (UNODC), have committed considerable resources behind. to strengthening regional cooperation through inte- Synthetic opioids continue to pose a serious threat grated UNODC country, regional and global to health, with overdose deaths rising in North programmes, as well as through platforms such as America and trafficking in fentanyl and its analogues the Central Asian Regional Information and expanding in Europe and elsewhere. The opioid Coordination Centre, the Afghanistan–Kyrgyzstan– crisis that has featured in far fewer headlines but Tajikistan Initiative and the Triangular Initiative that requires equally urgent international attention and its Joint Planning Cell. More research is needed, is the non-medical use of the painkiller tramadol, including to identify lessons learned and best prac- particularly in Africa. The amount of tramadol tices that could inform further action. seized globally reached a record 125 tons in 2017; International cooperation has also succeeded in the limited data available indicate that the tramadol checking the growth in new psychoactive substances. being used for non-medical purposes in Africa is The Vienna-based Commission on Narcotic Drugs being illicitly manufactured in South Asia and traf- has acted swiftly in recent years to schedule the most ficked to the region, as well as to parts of the Middle harmful new psychoactive substances, and the East. UNODC early warning advisory has helped to keep The response to the misuse of tramadol illustrates the international community abreast of the difficulties faced by countries in balancing nec- developments. essary access for medical purposes while curbing Political will and adequate funding remain prereq- abuse – with limited resources and health-care sys- uisites for success. Efforts by Colombia to reduce tems that are already struggling to cope – and at the cocaine production following the 2016 peace deal 1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 2019 with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia UNODC supports countries in putting their com- REPORT (FARC) are a case in point. Alternative development mitments into action through the application of initiatives have enabled farmers in central areas of international standards on the prevention and treat- DRUG the country previously under FARC control to aban- ment of drug use disorders and HIV, as well as don coca bush cultivation and join the licit economy. standards and norms on the administration of justice The result has been a drastic reduction in cocaine and the treatment of prisoners. We provide tailored WORLD production. However, in other areas previously con- technical assistance through our field offices and trolled by FARC, criminal groups have moved in to global programmes, and through toolkits and fill the vacuum and expand cultivation. Alternative research. development can succeed, but not without sustained I hope the World Drug Report 2019 will shed further attention and integration into broader development light on the world drug problem and inform inter- goals. national community responses. By working together The successes identified amid the many, formidable and focusing attention and resources, we can help problems that countries continue to face in grap- people get the services they need without discrimi- pling with drug supply and demand highlight that nation, promote security and bring criminals to international cooperation works. The challenge justice, safeguard health and achieve the Sustainable before us is to make this cooperation work for more Development Goals. people. International cooperation is based on agreed frame- works. Nearly every country in the world has reaffirmed its commitment to balanced, rights-based action based on the international drug control con- ventions. The most recent reaffirmation of that commitment is the Ministerial Declaration on Strengthening Our Actions at the National, Regional and International Levels to Accelerate the Imple- mentation of Our Joint Commitments to Address Yury Fedotov and Counter the World Drug Problem, adopted at Executive Director the ministerial segment of the sixty-second session United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime of the Commission on Narcotic Drugs. 2 CONTENTS BOOKLET 1 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY, CONCLUSIONS AND POLICY IMPLICATIONS PREFACE ..................................................................................................................... 1 EXPLANATORY NOTES .............................................................................................. 5 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY .............................................................................................. 7 LATEST TRENDS ....................................................................................................... 7 Improved data sharpen understanding of the extent of drug use globally ................................ 7 Cocaine production and seizures reach record highs .................................................................... 8 Methamphetamine use causes rising concern across several regions .......................................... 9 Synthetic opioid markets boom despite associated adverse health consequences ................... 10 Heroin still reaching the market despite declining opium production and rising seizures ...... 11 Cannabis market undergoes transition amid changes in legal status in some countries ......... 13 LAW ENFORCEMENT �������������������������������������������������������������������������������������������� 14 Authorities make inroads into hard-to-reach drug markets ....................................................... 14 Hallucinogen trafficking is more geographically clustered than trafficking in other drug types...................................................................................................... 15 Complex global smuggling networks underpin heroin and cocaine markets
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